Ignorance is Bliss
by bonnuit
Summary: Percy can sing. Not very many people know, and for a good reason. He doesn't like people knowing. His past is the main reason why. A talent like that could reveal all your secrets. But secrets are meant to be shared. (Light Percabeth somewhat AU)


Ignorance is Bliss

 **Percy**

Not many people knew he had a voice that would make most Apollo kids look down in shame. He never sang when anyone could hear him. He never mentioned anything about it. It was personal to him. He didn't want people to know. If anybody knew his past, they would understand, but he never told anyone about that either.

. . .

He first found out he had a good voice when he was seven. He was in music class. He didn't have any friends. All the teachers thought he was trouble. He could count on his hands the kids that were nice to him.

The teacher, Mrs. Vahn, had tried to embarrass him by forcing him to try out for the solo for the school musical. He looked down and slowly made his way to the front of the room by the mic. The whole class was staring at him; grinning at the thought of him failing.

Mrs. Vahn, smirking, started playing the first notes on the piano. He closed his eyes and focused on the lyrics. The words flooded out of him, and he couldn't focus on anything else. It felt good. _Really good_. Before he knew it, Mrs. Vahn had played the last note. He opened his eyes to see the whole class staring at him. Their mouths were wide open. He blushed and looked down at the floor, thinking that he had messed up.

The class started clapping. _Clapping_ for _him_. He was confused. Nobody had ever done anything for him that made him feel good about himself. He walked back to his seat, tripping over his own feet the whole way. He sat down and slowly looked up at everyone. They were smiling at him.

At the end of class, Mrs. Vahn came up to him and asked him if he wanted to sing the solo for the school play. He politely declined.

. . .

He learned to play the piano when he was nine. He always liked the sound of the piano. It was calm. He needed some more calm in his life. His stepdad was treating him badly. His stepdad seemed to punish him for everything he did these days.

His mom had told him that she would be an hour late the night before. He had told her it was fine and that he needed help with his math anyway. His math teacher had already left, and he was wandering the halls.

He walked past the music room and noticed the door was wide open. He peeked his head in and looked at the piano in the corner of the room. He slowly walked in, and glanced around the room. It was empty except for him. He made his way over to the piano and slowly sat down on the wooden bench. He took slow breaths as he ran his hand over the smooth wood. He looked down at the pearly white keys. He pressed a shaky finger on a middle key. A noise came out from the piano. He pulled his hand away slowly and just stared at the keys.

A hand touched his shoulder, and he jumped and scrambled away from it. His breathing wasn't calm anymore. He looked up and saw a middle aged man standing in front of him. The man bent down to his level.

"Hello," the man greeted. "What's your name little guy?"

"Percy Jackson, sir," he replied quietly, looking down at his feet.

"It's nice to meet you Percy. I'm Mr. Preston. Do you know how to play the piano?" The man smiled at him.

He started to shake. He was very nervous. His stepdad was never this nice to him. "N-no sir," he stuttered.

"Would you like to learn?" Mr. Preston was still smiling.

Percy looked up with wide eyes. He gave a small nod and looked back down.

"Well then, lets get to it!" Percy looked up and gave a small grin.

What Mr. Preston didn't know was that he was the reason for Percy Jackson's first real smile at that school. Even if it was a small one.

. . .

When he was eleven, Percy started to smile a little more. He had made his first friend at school, and kids weren't as mean to him for a change. He was happy at school for once, but home was a different story. His stepdad was unbearable. He would stay outside until it was too risky to be out of the house. It would be suicide to stay out too late when it got dark in his neighborhood.

The music teacher at his new school was nice, and after hearing him singing quietly in class, offered him private lessons during free period. He was very good at singing now.

She asked him if he wanted to join the talent show. He politely declined.

. . .

He didn't think his friends would ever find out. He was sitting in his room on the Argo ll. Leo had made all the seven monster proof Iphones. He had headphones in and was singing along to Fall Out Boy, as he drew pictures at his desk. He paused his music and turned around, intending to get a snack from the kitchen. The rest of the seven were standing at his door, looking at him with wide eyes. Percy's face turned a deep shade of red. He rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

"How much did you hear?" He questioned anxiously.

"A lot," Annabeth replied. "Sometime since about Rat a Tat." She was looking at him with a slightly annoyed expression. "You never told me you could sing."

"I've never really told anyone," he mumbled. He spoke up a little, "um I'm a little hungry." He attempted to move through them, but they all blocked his way.

Percy glanced around at them all. Piper and Hazel looked shocked. Frank looked awkward (normal). Jason looked slightly angry. Leo looked dazed, and Annabeth looked, as he noticed earlier, slightly annoyed.

Percy's stomach growled. He sighed. "Can I at least get something to eat before you inaugurate me?"

Annabeth huffed. "Fine. But I expect full answers." She turned around and led the way to the kitchen, and the rest awkwardly followed.

Percy grabbed an apple and sat down next to Annabeth. "Ok," he sighed, "what do you want to know?"

Annabeth paused, "why didn't you tell anyone?"

"Nobody needed to know." He took a bite of his apple.

"Does your mom know?" Hazel asked timidly.

"No. Not at all." Percy was suddenly very interested in his apple.

Awkward silence.

"Do you play any instruments?" Frank chimed in.

"The piano. Kind of. I only really played for one year." His expression drooped a little as he said this.

"I don't really see why its a big deal." Jason grumbled. Piper scowled at him slightly.

"Same." Percy sighed. "Well, I'm going to go back to my room. I was doing important stuff." He stood up and threw his apple away.

"Wait!" Annabeth stood up too. "I still have questions!"

"Oops." He walked back to his room and made sure he shut the door.

He sighed and went back to his drawing. It was basically a bunch of scribbles. He could hear faint arguing from the kitchen. Realizing he had night shift, he decided to go to bed. Taking off his shirt and throwing on some sweatpants, he went to sleep.

He didn't sleep well that night. He was thinking too much of his past. He relived all his worst memories from school. When Piper woke him up for night shift, he wasn't fully awake.

"Percy," her voice shook a little and she wasn't looking at his face. "You'll have to wake up Annabeth." She rushed out of his room.

He looked down and paled. He forgot that he didn't wear a shirt to bed. Stupid he thought to himself. His mom was the only other person that had seen his scars. He just told her they were from falling and other things. He usually wore a shirt when he went swimming because he never got wet unless he wanted to.

He threw on some clothes and rushed out of his room, cursing himself the whole way. He went to Annabeth's room and shook her awake. She got out of bed, and he went up to the deck. He climbed onto the railing and stared out at the sea. He felt Annabeth sit next to him.

They sat in silence for a while. Enjoying each others presence. He liked that about Annabeth. He didn't have to force himself to try to make small talk.

"What's bothering you?" Annabeth asked him quietly. "Don't protest. I can see you're nervous about something."

He smiled slightly at her. "Me? Protest? I think you have the wrong person." She gave him a look. "Ok fine." He paused. "Piper… saw… my… scars." He said lamely.

Annabeth looked confused. "Ok... Why is it a big deal? Everybody has them."

He looked down and fiddled with his hands. "Because… I have… a lot of them." He finished stupidly. Annabeth still looked confused when he glanced at her. "And they aren't from the magical monsters." He looked away from her.

"Then what are they from?" She asked gently. Taking his face so he looked at her.

He tried to form the words, but he couldn't. He just opened and closed his mouth.

"It's ok, Percy." Annabeth said gently. "You can tell me whenever you're ready."

Gods he loved her. "I-I just don't know how to say it." He confessed. "I've never talked about it. Ever." He pulled his face out of her hand and stared out at the ocean. He felt bad, but he didn't want to tell her. It was his problem. He checked his watch sometime later.

"Shifts up Annabeth. I'll go wake up Frank. You get Hazel." He hopped off the railing, but a loud screech made him freeze and turn around.

He was just able to see a dragon grab Annabeth in its mouth. She yelled in alarm and pain. He took riptide, uncapped it, and threw it at the monster attack button on the other side of the deck. It hit dead center. He jumped off the side of the boat, knowing that his sword would come back to his pocket as sirens blared on the ship.

A blurred black thing flew out from underneath him. He changed direction of his dive, and managed to catch onto the dragon's tail. He clung on for dear life as it bucked him around. It paused for a brief second and Percy grabbed his sword out from his pocket. He stabbed it higher into the dragon's soft skin next to gaps in the scales. He pulled himself up and slowly made his way to the top of the dragon's head.

Annabeth was dangling by her leg and was trying to grab onto anything on the dragon that would help her pull herself up. Percy sliced at it's eye, causing it to veer off course. He stabbed it in the side of its mouth, and it reflexively dropped Annabeth. Percy was about to call upon his fishy powers, but a streak of blonde flew past and grabbed Annabeth out of midair. He sighed in relief, knowing it was Jason.

The dragon turned and started flying at the Argo ll. It opened its mouth, and it started to glow a faint orange. Percy brought water up from the sea, and just when the dragon was about to burn the ship, he formed a barrier around its mouth. But, he timed it a second too late and wasn't able to fully surround the dragon's head. The flames bounced back and blinded the dragon and burned him. He screamed in pain. The dragon crashed into the ship and it orange faded into black.

. . .

 **Jason**

Percy and the dragon crashed into the ship, and he paled at the sight of it. Percy's skin was a bright red and was steaming. His fingers and wrists were black. Annabeth was yelling his name and trying to crawl over to him. He could faintly hear Piper praying to Apollo behind him.

Apollo flashed in next to him. He kneeled down next to Percy without saying anything. He placed a hand over his skin and Jason watched as it slowly turned into a normal shade. Percy didn't wake up though. He laid there without moving. Apollo placed his hand on his forehead. He looked to be in deep concentration.

"When he crashed, his head must have hit the floor. It triggered some sort of flashback." Apollo looked at them. "I looked into it. I think you should all see it."

His vision tunneled and went faded to black.

. . .

Jason opened his eyes and looked around. Piper and Leo were standing next to him. Hazel, Frank, and Annabeth were standing on the other side of Piper. Percy was not with them. They were in one of the nastiest homes he had ever seen is his life. The walls were faded and chipped. The carpets were stained and filled with beer bottles and dirty laundry.

It took him a while to notice a little boy with black hair kneeling down by the side of couch. The boy was really skinny, and his clothes were very dirty and had a lot of holes. The boy was staring at a bag of chips sitting on the coffee table.

The boy suddenly lunged for the chips, grabbed them, and ran off. He ran right into Jason, who didn't expect him to move so suddenly, but the boy passed right through him. Jason was just able to see a pair of sea green eyes.

Jason watched him run to a room at the end of the hallway, but a walrus sized man stepped out into the hall, and the boy ran into him. The boy bounced off the man and fell onto the floor. The little boy started trembling and was looking down at the ground.

"Watch where yer goin' brain boy." The man slurred as if drunk. "What do ya got ther, boy?" The man reached down and snatched the bag of chips out of the boy's hands. The walrus' face turned an ugly shade of red. "These aren't ma chips are they?" The boy tried to run, but the man grabbed him by his neck.

"I-I'm s-sorry s-s-sir." The boy's voice shook. He was shaking in fear. "I-I was j-just hungry." The little boys stomach growled in agreement.

The man yelled in anger and threw the boy at the wall. They all gasped. The man started to punch the little boy. Jason growled in anger, but deep inside he knew there was nothing he could do.

"Yer lucky I'm a feelin' nice," the man snarled at the boy. He kicked him once for good measure and, with the chips, walked down the hall.

The little boy got up slowly (Jason noticed a black eye was starting to form) and ran into his room. The little boy grabbed his backpack off the floor and ran out of the house. The six teens followed him.

He ran for a long time through a bad looking neighborhood. He only stopped when he reached the main entrance of a school. Hillstone Public School, Jason noticed. They followed the boy through a maze of hallways. They entered an open doorway labeled music room.

A man was sitting at a piano playing a few notes. He noticed the little boy standing there and waved him over. "Percy!" (The six teens' eyes widened) The man sounded excited. "I'm glad you could make it!"

"Sorry," the little boy now named Percy replied. "My mom made me eat a quick dinner."

"It's alright. Come on over. Let's pick up from where we were last time." The man smiled at Percy, who smiled right back.

Percy put his tiny hands on the keyboard and started to play a slow song. His hands started moving faster and faster as the song moved along. He suddenly stopped and started to play slow. The final note sounded and the man at the piano with him started to clap.

"You mastered it! Just like I knew you could!" If the man smiled any bigger, his mouth would fall off his face.

Percy was blushing and mumbled a small thanks.

The scene changed.

They were standing in a corner of school classroom. The kids were all talking and screaming. The teacher was trying to calm the students down. The kids all seemed to be pointing and shouting at a black haired kid in a corner of the room.

"Its all his fault!" One kid screamed.

"He's a freak."

"Nobody even likes him."

"What a moron."

The teacher walked to her desk and started to fill out a pass. She walked up to the kid in the corner. "Take this and go to the principal's office."

The black haired kid took it and rushed out of the room. They followed him. The kid walked down the hallway with his head down. They all entered a room labeled Principal's Office. They boy knocked on the door and stood back to wait. They all stood there awkwardly for a minute before the door finally opened.

A man walked out and looked at the boy standing there and sighed. He waved him in. The six teens huddled in the corner as the little boy sat in the chair on the opposite side.

"What did you do this time Percy?" The principal questioned.

"Nothing! I swear!" He rushed, leaning forward in his seat as he said this. "It's not like I knew the sink was going to explode onto the whole class! It just happened! Honestly!" Percy threw his hands up. (The six were all laughing knowing that Percy really did make the sink explode.)

The principal sighed. "I'm going to send you home with a note. I'll call your parents and have them pick you up."

Percy looked down and nodded. "I'm sorry Mr. B. I'll try harder."

The principal's eyes softened. "You are a good kid, Percy. Don't let Mrs. Fill get to you."

Percy nodded and got up slowly. "I guess. I'll go get my stuff."

Mr. B smiled sadly. "I'll call your house."

Percy left the room and went to packed up his stuff.

The six stayed in the office to hear the phone call. Mr. B sighed and picked up the phone. He dialed a number and put it up to his ear. They all waited awkwardly.

"Hello, is this the Jackson household?" Mr. B asked. They heard a voice reply, but it was too quiet to hear.

Mr. B flinched. "Somewhat. He needs to be picked up from school." The voice replied. "I'm sorry for the inconvenience, but it's school policy. Have a nice day, sir." Mr. B put the phone down in a rush.

The six walked out of the room into the waiting room where Percy sat with his backpack. He was tapping his fingers on the armrest and shifting in his seat. His breathing was slightly fast as if he sprinted the whole way there.

They all waited. Finally after about 20 minutes the walrus walked into the room. It scowled at Percy. "Get up, boy. We're leavin' right now," Walrus snarled.

Percy was shaking as he stood up and walked out with the man walrus.

The six rushed into the car before Percy could close the door. (Percy was literally sitting inside of Jason) The ride was silent except for the grumbles of the overweight man driving the vehicle. They arrived at a trashy looking apartment in the back of the city.

Percy followed the man up the stairs into a room labeled 61. It was the same dumpy apartment from before. The minute they walked into the door, walrus grabbed Percy and threw him onto the floor.

"I bought you a new treat, brain boy," the man laughed and pulled off a belt hanging over the side of a kitchen chair. Percy tried to get away, but the man stepped on his arm. A loud snap was heard and Percy screamed in pain. (The six were all watching in horror and disgust.) The man stuffed a handkerchief from his pocket into the green eyed boy's mouth. He took the whip and snapped it once causing Percy to flinch. The man cackled.

He raised it up and snapped it against Percy's back. Percy screamed and tears filled his eyes. (For the first time in his life, Jason saw Annabeth cry.) Percy was malnourished, so the belt was basically hitting his bones. The man repeated his actions until Percy passed out from pain. He stayed awake for 9 lashes.

The scene changed.

They were all standing in a playground of a school. The kids were all huddled up in a corner of the playground. The six walked over to the group. A black haired boy was laying on the ground covered in dirt. The group of kids were all kicking him and throwing rocks at him. (The six were all yelling, but the kids couldn't hear them.)

"Freak," one kid spat.

"Go die!"

"You don't have any friends so why are you even here?"

"Retard!"

"You deserve this!"

A teacher glanced in their direction, but kept walking.

They were suddenly pulled back to reality.

. . .

Jason sat up slowly and blinked his eyes. He looked around and saw everyone but Percy doing the same. The son of Poseidon was laying on the ground and staring up at the clouds, unblinking.

"I saw you guys in my head." Percy looked at each of them. "I know you saw all of that."

Annabeth took a shaky breath, "that's what you were trying to tell me last night? You were trying to tell me about that fat man abusing you?"

Percy nodded.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Hazel asked quietly.

There was a pause.

"Because ignorance is bliss." Percy grinned slightly.

Fin

 **A/N So this is kind of awkward. How'd it go? Good, bad, trashy? I don't really know what I'm doing. Hope it's not too obvious. I tried to use periods for line breaks instead of some weird dots so hopefully they work okay.**

 **List of shoutouts:**

 **Shoutout to Ed Sheeran for keeping me focused with his majestic voice.**

 **Shoutout to the people reading my story.**

 **Shoutout to my nonexistent fans.**

 **Shoutout to Rick Riordan for writing my favorite character of all time. PJs the real MVP.**

 **Apologizing now for grammar mistakes, spelling mistakes, and bad description mistakes.**


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